


Cherish

by archsbetty



Category: Riverdale - Fandom, archiecomics
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-19
Updated: 2019-07-19
Packaged: 2020-07-08 21:46:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19876582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/archsbetty/pseuds/archsbetty
Summary: In which Archie realizes his feelings for Betty and how much he cherishes her, but doesn't realize that it isn't too late to tell her.





	Cherish

**Author's Note:**

> idk how to work ao3 lol sorry i literally just made this account but enjoy

_It was the moment their hands touched; the way she looked at him with her sparkling green eyes when she told him that she was always going to be there for him._

Archie had taken a couple of weeks off from school due to the whole Hiram situation and came back severely behind in all of his classes. Betty, however, being the gem that she is, wasn't going to let him stay that way. She had told him before that if he ever needed help with anything to let her know, and even offered to tutor him again in any subject he'd like. 

Archie thought about all of the times Betty had tutored him before. He thought about the second grade; how he almost wouldn't have passed the class and would've been behind from the rest of his classmates if it weren't for Betty. It baffled him that even in the second grade, she was as willing and determined to help him as she was today. She had remained the same caring and charismatic person he's always known her to be after all of these years and Archie really admired that about her. 

This also proved to be true when Betty offered to tutor him when the SATs were coming up. Even with all of the wrong in her life, she tossed everything to the side and made sure to prioritize Archie instead. She wanted to make sure she was going to graduate with her best friend and Archie knew she was going to do whatever it took to make sure that happened. She showed up to his house with the same color-coded flashcards she'd used to help tutor him in the second grade and they got to work immediately. But, she noticed he had been down and wasn't in the mood to study. Betty could tell how lost Archie was with his life and himself after leaving the town, going through a breakup, and coming back to missing everything that had happened when he was gone. So, instead of tutoring him like she planned, Betty helped remind him of who he was and who he used to be. Although she necessarily didn't tutor him, he ended up learning something new anyways. He learned that day how much she still cared about him. Even if things weren't the same between them anymore, even if they didn't spend as much time together as they used to, the love she had for him was always there. And he realized just how much he took her for granted. 

He decided to take her up on her offer, but not to get tutored this time. The girl deserved a break after all of times she's constantly saved his ass, _but_ he did ask her if he could borrow her notes in which she quickly responded with "Of course! Anything for you, Arch." 

They texted the night before and scheduled to meet up outside of the student lounge before the start of first period. They could've just met up in the morning and walked to school together, but Jughead walks her now. And in no way did Archie want to third wheel. 

He often wonders how he's let it get to this point, how Jughead got in the way of everything they used to do together. He guesses it was kind of meant to happen. They both were eventually going to meet new people, it wasn't going to be just the two of them forever. _But after everything that has happened and all that he's been through, he kinda wished it was._

Archie enters the building in his Riverdale High hoodie, already being unsure about being there. He contemplates turning around and going back home but he knows running away from his problems won't solve them. Instead, he makes his way to the student lounge.

His mood brightens almost instantly the second he lays his eyes on her and he could feel himself calming down as she makes her way towards him. He noticed she was wearing a white low-cut tank top with little red cherries all over them paired with blue high waisted skinny jeans. 

Maybe it was because she had her hair down that day, or how her top fit her figure flawlessly, or maybe it was her cheeks that looked rosier and her eyes more mesmerizing than usual, but Archie couldn't help but think about how beautiful Betty looked; how even in the hectic hallways with people he didn't even know, all he could pay attention to was her. He felt himself freeze when he realized she was right in front of him. 

"Arch!" Betty says with a smile. "There you are. I thought you stood me up." 

"You know I'd never," he looks at her and then down to his shoes. "I guess I'm just nervous to be back.. it's been a while." 

"It's nothing I can't help you catch up with," Betty gives him a reassuring smile.

"Thanks, Betty. I can always count on you." 

"Of course." 

Things went silent between them for a while, but it was a comfortable silence. They just looked at each other as people walked by.

The warning bell rings and Betty then remembers why they were both standing in front of each other, "Right! The notes! Let me grab them." Betty reaches for her backpack.

"Oh yeah," Archie says almost disappointedly, "Forgot about those." 

Betty pulls out a stuffed binder and two notebooks. 

"Here are all of the notes I've taken. Everything is color-coded by subject and highlighted by topics. It should be easy to follow through with," Betty says straightforwardly. 

Archie raises an eyebrow at her and she starts to laugh.

"Did you forget who I am? Nothing in school is easy for me to follow through with," Archie says smugly.

Betty hands him the notes and looks up to him, "Well, I'm a call and a doorstep away if you have any questions, or if you simply need anything else. Oh and, feel free to keep the notes for as long as you'd like."

"Thanks, Betty. This means so much, you have no idea."

"I mean it, Arch," Betty reaches for Archie's empty hand, the one not held with all of her perfectly written notes, and holds it in her own. She looks up at him reassuringly and says, "About the 'needing anything else' part. You know I'm always here for you." 

Archie stops in his tracks. He looks at their hands. Her hands are so soft and small, he can't help but realize how perfectly they fit into his. It was almost like they were meant to be in his own.

It wasn't until a classmate in the halls accidentally bumped into him that made him enter reality again. Archie quickly snaps out of his thoughts, hoping Betty didn't notice he had been looking at their hands a little too long. _What the hell was he doing?_

"Yeah, I know." 

And he does know. Because she has proven from time and time again how much she means what she says, how loyal she is, and how much she cares about him. He hates how he's taken this long to realize how lucky he is to have her in his life. 

"Right, well I have to get going," Betty lets go of Archie's hand. "The bell's about to ring. I'll see you at lunch, yeah?" 

Archie nods. "I'll catch you later. Thank you once again. For everything." 

Betty smiles at him. She walks past him and starts walking her way to her class. Archie smiles to himself as he replays their encounter in his head and turns around to look at her one last time. 

Jughead appears to be right by her and puts his arm over her shoulder, leaning in for a kiss.

Archie's smile dropped and the warm feeling he didn't even know he had in his stomach went away. _What the hell?_

He's seen them kiss a million times but has never felt whatever he's feeling now. _Why is this happening?_ He watches them enter their classroom together, hand in hand. He never would've admitted this to himself but, it _hurt_ to see them together.

He didn't understand what was going on with him at the moment, but he knew whatever it was he was feeling was _wrong._ They're his two closest friends, for god's sake.

The bell rang and Archie realizes he's the only one standing in the empty hallway.

Well, fuck. It's his first day back and he's already late to first period. 

-

Archie walks into the cafeteria with Reggie and they make their way over to their usual table. Everyone exchanges their hellos and Reggie plops down in the chair right next to Veronica's. 

It still shocked him that Reggie and Veronica were a thing. Sure, it bugged him at first that his ex-girlfriend and one of his good friends were dating, but he got over it eventually. They made each other happy and that was all that mattered. Plus, he was just glad that his breakup with Veronica was mutual and that they both remained really good friends after. All in all, he was really happy for them. 

As Archie watched Reggie take up one of the remaining seats, he realizes that the only seat left at the lunch table was right next to Betty's. So naturally, he sits down next to her. But for some odd reason, Archie felt like he shouldn't have, especially with what had happened this morning. _It was probably nothing,_ he thought to himself.

Instantly, he's greeted by Cheryl and Toni.

"Hey, Archie. It's been a while, how's being back to school?" Toni asks him.

"Uh, It's nice. It's been refreshing, actually. I missed you guys." 

"We missed you too, Andrews," Jughead says. 

"I don't really care about anybody here except for my T.T.," Cheryl begins, "but I couldn't help but notice the halls of Riverdale High felt empty without it's golden boy, Archie Andrews, roaming them." She continues, "Plus, you're the only other person here that I actually like so, it's good to have you back. I missed you." 

"We're all standing right here, Cheryl." Jughead says, rolling his eyes.

"And? Go back to eating your sandwich, hobo." 

Archie laughs. 

Betty steps in. "Alright, quit it you two," she says, annoyed. "But Cheryl's right, Arch. It really is good to have you back." 

Everyone nods in agreement and Betty gives Archie a side-hug. 

Suddenly, his heart started beating a little bit faster and his palms began to sweat. And he strangely felt warm inside, again.

Archie wasn't able to process what and how he was feeling because Reggie then says, "Yeah, yeah. I'm just glad to have my star quarterback back. The team _sucked_ without you, dude."

"I don't know if I'm going to continue playing football, Reg. I'm not feeling it anymore."

"What?! Archiekins, you can't! The team needs you, _your_ team." Veronica says.

"She's right," Cheryl adds. "I don't want to continue cheering for a team that always loses. It gives the vixens a bad rep." 

Betty gives all of them a disappointed look. "I don't think Archie should do anything he's not comfortable with."

Archie gives her a sincere glance. "Thanks, Betty." She gives a comforting smile back.

"I'm gonna have to agree with Betty on this one," Toni adds. "I'm sorry babe," she looks to Cheryl.

Archie gives Toni a smile and thanks her too. 

The group then all break into their separate conversations. 

Since Archie was the only one in the group not in a relationship, he didn't have anybody to talk to. He plays with his food and waits for lunch to end so the misery could be over.

Betty nudges him, "Hey, you alright?" 

"Yeah, I'm just bored." 

Betty laughs. "I could tell. But hey, I was thinking, how about you walk me home today? Just like the old times?"

Archie didn't even think twice before saying, "That sounds great. I'd love that."

He was now excited for the school day to be over. Not that he wasn't excited already, considering dismissal is already Archie's favorite part of the school day, but getting to walk home with his best friend today made it even better. He couldn't wait.

-

Archie switches between looking out the window and staring at the clock for the last hour he's in his final period. He just wanted the day to be over.

He dozed off every here and there but bolted up immediately the second he got a text from his phone.

Ten minutes before the bell rang, Betty texted him.

_"Meet me at the front door!"_

_"Sounds good. See you then."_

The bell rings and Archie's the first out of his classroom. He probably ran out faster than he should've, but he didn't care. He just wanted to go home. _And he just wanted to see Betty,_ but he'd never admit that to himself. 

He walks out of the building, down the stairs, and spots Betty right away by a bench. He couldn't help but think about how good she looked in her outfit today.

Archie sneakily walks up behind her without her noticing and scares her.

"BOO!" He yells.

Betty screams. "Archie!" she shrieks, "that isn't funny!" and she slaps his arm. 

Archie laughs and lets her calm down before saying, "You all ready to go?" 

"Yes, I am. Even though I'm regretting the decision of letting you walk me home right about now." 

Archie frowns. "I'm sorry, Betty," he gives her the pouty face, "It was just a joke."

Betty knew she couldn't stay mad at him for long when he was making _that_ face. She slowly smiles. "You're forgiven. Now come on, let's go." 

They walk in silence the first half of the way home, but it was a comfortable silence. It's hard for things to be awkward between them, to be honest. They're too close for that to happen. _They even managed to get over the kiss._

Archie has his hands in his front pockets and Betty plays with the straps on her backpack.

He decides to break the silence by saying, "So, Jughead couldn't walk you home today?" 

Betty shrugs. "He had serpent shit to deal with so I told him there was no need. But that doesn't matter because I wanted you to walk me home today anyways. I've been missing you a lot lately, Arch," she says, almost embarrassed. 

"I've missed you too. And I'm here. I've always been here." 

"I know.. I'm just really glad you're back." 

Archie looks at her. He wanted to tell her that he missed _her_ , that he wished it was just the two of them again and that she should've just let him finish his sentence when he was saying "A little part of me always thought--" 

But instead, he responds with "Me too," and they continue their walk in silence.

The two scenarios that had happened earlier today would not leave Archie's mind. He couldn't stop thinking about the fact that she was such an amazing person. And more importantly, _why was he feeling this way around her?_

When they make it to their houses, Archie stops and looks directly at her. "Thanks for saving me back there — at lunch today, I mean." 

"It was no problem. You shouldn't be forced into doing anything you don't want to do." Betty tells him.

"I know I've said this a million times today but.. Thank you, Betty. It means a lot that you're always there. I hope you know how much I appreciate you." 

Betty gives him a heartwarming smile and gives him a tight hug.

His heart begins to race again and he hugs her back even tighter. Archie can't help but notice all of the perfect things about her. How her body fits perfectly into his, how she smells of both vanilla and roses at the same time, how she's so soft that he could hold her in his arms forever, and how delicate she was that made him not want to let go.

But sadly, he had to. So he did.

"Well, I better get going. Thanks for walking me home. I'll see you later, Arch."

"See you, Betty."

Betty walks to her door, turns around, and gives him one last smile before entering her home. Archie waves goodbye and makes his way over to his own.

He walks into the kitchen and notices Mary cooking.

"Hi, sweetie! How was school today?"

"It was good, mom. Betty lended me her notes to look over." 

Mary smiled. "That's great. I love Betty." 

Archie chuckles. "Yeah, I know you do, mom."

Mary looks at him, disappointed that he didn't get the memo. "Well, lunch will be ready in ten minutes so why don't you go up and freshen up, okay?"

Archie nods.

He immediately runs upstairs to his bedroom. He plops onto his bed and thinks, _What the hell happened today?_

Archie would be lying if he said he hasn't felt this way towards Betty before. When he first saw Betty and Jughead get together, he couldn't help but feel jealous. Because even though it wasn't their time yet, a little part of him always thought they were going to end up together. So seeing Betty with Jughead was hard for him to watch. And at one point, it got so bad for him that he almost expressed his feelings for Betty before she stopped him. _She knew what he was going to say too._

And he was glad she did. Because if she hadn't, he would've ruined everything with everyone; with Betty, with Veronica, and with Jughead.

Plus, being with Veronica helped him forget. He actually did love her and was grateful that they were together for as long as they were. 

The one other time Archie felt that way towards Betty was when they kissed. In even such a traumatic situation, they made each other feel safe and loved. There was so much adrenaline, lust, and tension that night that when they kissed, it felt like the world stopped in that moment and it was just the two of them. Everything felt right. Until it all became wrong.

They had an unspoken agreement to never mention that night and to never go there with each other ever again, _which is why they kept all of their feelings for each other bottled up._

They felt _too_ much for each other. And if it were to get out, they would ruin everything. 

And that's when Archie realized; when he was laying on his bed, thinking about the moment where Betty held his hand and looked into his eyes. It was as if her hand was the key to his heart, the one that kept all of his bottled feelings for her buried. 

He could no longer hold them in and he could no longer deny what he feels for his best friend.

He likes _her._

Archie Andrews likes Betty Cooper. Fuck.


End file.
